Sickness
by Hellhound15
Summary: When he found out that he was going to die, Sasuke did not panic like his family; he had already been informed by the ghosts. But he wasn't going to die before he fullfilled a promise to the Yondaime's ghost.
1. Prologue

"I'm dying." It was a statement, said with such bland conviction, that it left the other without a doubt that he was not asking a question. But the other answered anyway.

"No you're not." _I won't let you._

The next day, the other found him kneeling in front of the Memorial Stone dressed fully in white and Chrysanthemums in his hair.

* * *

He stood before the Hokage with certain stillness that distinctly reminded the old man of one of those cherubs carved from marble that stood watching over the dead at the cemetery. The Hokage felt rather old at that moment, as he peered down at the child. Yet another was going to die too young, much too young.

This one was a genius, much like his elder brother, but also much different. They were both quiet, but Itachi was solemn in his silence, as if he didn't want to disturb what may be there. The child in front of him had no such reservations, but he was quiet with an odd look in his eyes as if he saw things others didn't notice and heard things when there was nothing to hear.

The Hokage was against this. They were not currently having a war so there was no need for children to graduate early. But this child had already learnt all there was to learn at the Academy and not letting him graduate would be holding him back. With a heavy heart, he signed the document and called for Hatake Kakashi.

From this day on, Uchiha Sasuke was the Genin Apprentice of one Hatake Kakashi.

* * *

TBC


	2. Kakashi

When Kakashi was informed that he was to take on an apprentice or he would be doing D-ranks for a month, he expected his student to be a snotty know-it-all or a whiny little brat.

When he was notified the fact that it was an Uchiha he was teaching, he briefly considered going missing-nin to Suna. But then his monthly subscription to 'Icha Icha Paradise' would be cancelled and women from all around Konoha would probably start a bonfire with his house and burn all his precious books. And anyway, he could deal with angsty or moody Uchiha brats. All Uchiha children were like that, except Itachi. But Itachi was just plain odd.

He mentally prepared himself for an on slaughter of complaints and curses that no child should know when he arrived a few hours late at the designated meeting point. But there was only the bright chirping of birds and the rustling of leaves. If anyone had been around and had bothered looking closely, they would have noticed what looked suspiciously like a sweat drop on his oddly spiked silver hair. But there was no one to see, because this was one of the residences that had not been rebuilt after the Kyuubi attack.

Just before he decided to give up and return to the Hokage's office, he noticed a figure dressed in white down the road. His only visible eye squinted into a happy upside down 'U'. He didn't realize where he was headed until he was only a few metres from the house. This was the Main House of the Namikaze Clan.

It would have sounded terribly cliché to say that his heart skipped a beat, but that was exactly what happened. He hadn't been able to bring himself to visit this deceased teacher's house since the Kyuubi had gone on a merry rampage through Konoha. Gathering all the resolve and determination he could, Kakashi snuck up on the poor kid.

From his very insightful and intuitive observations, the boy could barely six years old and looked rather skinny. He felt a disturbing urge to clap his hands over his unfortunate visible eye. Damn, there was so much white. The child had skin like a pale porcelain doll and white Chrysanthemums in his onyx hair. Wide livid eyes curtained by ridiculously long lashes stood out starkly against his skin. He wore a short sleeved ivory white kimono that reached the ground.

If Kakashi had been feeling particularly poetic that day, he would have remarked mentally on the way the boy's spiked ebony black hair and slightly long bangs contrasted nearly artistically against the soft bleach white of his face.

Kakashi followed the boy's gaze and spotted a window on the second floor and watched as his eyes drifted almost lazily to the ground under the window. He remembered that had been the place Minato-sensei had proclaimed his undying love to Kushina-san as he tried unsuccessfully to woo her with cheesy love lines. That had also been the same window Kushina-san had used to throw insults and sharp objects down at the lovesick Yondaime.

He tapped the boy on the shoulder and watched in amusement as he jumped and spun around to look at him but his mood quickly shifted as those eyes only rested upon his person for a moment before flickering to the empty space next to him.

"Yo. I'm your Jounin teacher, Hatake Kakashi. Introduce yourself."

He watched in mild curiosity as the child's eyes seemed to stare a bit longer at the space next to him before sharpening to stare at him.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I'm turning six soon. I like the color black," at the dubious look in Kakashi's eye, he elaborated. "It hides bloodstains easily. I dislike the color white," again Kakashi interrupted with a pointed glance at the color he was clothed in. "Because it reminds me that I don't have much time left. I don't have a dream, but I want to keep a promise before I die and my hobbies are … Actually, now I think about it, I don't have any hobbies. I seriously need to talk about my psychiatrist about that."

"Right… meet me tomorrow at five in the morning."

"Ok, I'll be there at ten after my appointment with the psychiatrist."

Kakashi sweat dropped. There was something seriously wrong with his new apprentice.


	3. Family

Family

The child hadn't been supposed to survive. When Mikoto had fallen ill during the last stages of her pregnancy everyone had expected a miss carriage. But the child had survived and now, only a few weeks later, she was in labor, panting and swearing up a storm at her poor husband. Fugaku and his first son, Itachi, were pacing in the waiting room. Well, Fugaku was pacing but Itachi was just bored, not that he showed it. He had been sitting on a rather stiff chair for several hours now, and his back was starting to feel the strain.

When a wailing filled the air, the shinobi instincts of both males, no matter how fresh or rusty, went into overdrive and they leapt into fighting stances. Their senses were both still on high alert when a flustered looking medic-nin pushed open the door of the where the horrendous screams were coming from. Seeing who it was waiting at the doorway, the medic-nin quickly bowed and addressed the older of the two.

"Congratulations, Uchiha-sama, it's a boy."

Nearly before she could finish her sentence, two blurs burst past her and into the door she had just exited. With a befuddled smile on her face, she walked away. If she had peered through the door, the medic-nin would have seen the Head of the Main House of the illustrious Uchiha Clan practically cooing over a still howling baby and his wife and oldest son looking on with identical bemused looks on their faces. This was the child that they had given life to, not out of duty to their clan, but because of love. They wouldn't let anything happen to him.

It wasn't until Sasuke was four that they found out that there was a very great chance that their child would die before them.

That had been the day he had started coughing up blood.

* * *

The day the Kyuubi attack ended and his best friend sacrificed himself for his village, Fugaku decided that he would prepare his youngest son as best as he could, because otherwise, the child would never survive.

He started training little Sasuke since the boy started walking and made extra sure that the child understood that it wasn't a _game_ and that it was _real _lives that those tiny hand would hold in its palms. His wife had protested against teaching her baby things like that at such a young age, but whenever he looked into those wide eyes, he knew that the child at least comprehended what he was being told on a subconscious level. That would be enough; it _had_ to be enough, because Fugaku didn't want to think what could go wrong if he hadn't understood. And after those lessons with his young son, he would relax the slightest and let out a breath that sounded the most minuscule amount relieved.

Everything changed after Fugaku came back from a mission that had lasted a few months. While he watched his child perform an academy standard kata, he noticed the slight pause in the child's movements and the way his son seemed constantly short of breath. But he quickly brushed it off as the boy slacking in his exercises while he has been away and briefly noted down mentally that the child had to practice more.

The next day, Sasuke vanished.

* * *

It had been Itachi who found him first and oddly enough, he had been in front of the Namikaze Manor. What Itachi found there made him freeze and his jaw slacken.

The Yondaime was standing there before him with a vaguely sheepish grin on his face. But there was blood on his Jounin flak jacket and he was cradling a small raven haired infant in his arms. Not knowing how to deal with this situation, Itachi called for backup in the form of the Uchiha Clan Head and Sandaime Hokage.

How he persuaded such important figures to drop what they were doing (and in the Sandaime's case it was quite literal)?

Just a short and sharp message did the trick.

_'The Yondaime is back.'_


	4. Meeting

Meeting

It was a tribute to the fact that Uchihas could accomplish anything as long as they were stubborn enough, that Fugaku arrived at approximately the same time as the Sandaime and taking into consideration that the Uchiha Complexes were on the other side of the Village and the Hokage Tower was only a street away, it was quite an achievement.

When he arrived there, Fugaku had to use all of his infamous Uchiha restraint not to run away screaming like a little girl. It was not every day that you saw your allegedly dead best friend standing in front of you with the same insufferable grin on his very much alive face. Fugaku was definitely not having a good day.

But like any competent shinobi, he kept his head while in a possibly dangerous situation and waited until he was in a lonely secluded corner before spazzing out. He watched from the corner of his eyes as the Sandaime made a seal and with a calm that the old man should _not_ be feeling on the inside, he tried to dispel the supposed genjustu.

The problem was in the fact that there was no telltale dramatic poof of smoke or something equally impressive.

There was only him, the Sandaime, his eldest son, his best friend that _should_ be dead, his youngest child in said best friend's arms and –_wait_ was that…?

"Obito-nii?"

"Yo, Ita-chan, sorry I'm late and all that, but you see there were these boulders that I couldn't get around and before I could rescue a beautiful princess, I had to fight a Cyclops…" Fugaku tuned out his nephew with a practiced ease and watched Minato smile fondly.

"… and did I tell you that the Cyclops is sitting in front of a certain stone right now?"

When Fugaku peered at Obito carefully, he could see a slight pink flush in his face and a slur in his words. Was he… _drunk_? Hopefully not. Obito was the reason alcohol had been banned from the compound in the first place. A hyper Obito had painted the whole Village a ghastly neon orange and tied people into pairs with a rope that wouldn't let them go until they kissed each other; he remembered that was how Minato and Kushina had gotten together, after Kushina had stomped the stuffing out of him _of course_. Perhaps the Gods would be merciful and Obito would _only_ pretend to be Uchiha Madara and join a gang that was intent upon capturing all the Tailed Beasts to put an illusion on the Moon?

Fugaku quickly shook that mental image out of his head. What was _wrong_ with him? He was acting very unbecoming of the Uchiha Clan Head.

* * *

Eyeing his father who was shaking his head and shuddering at nothing, Itachi declared to himself that his father was mentally unbalanced. Continuing to stare warily at the man who had spawned him, he decided that if the man showed even the slightest more insanity, he would be grabbing Sasuke and running for the hills.

Slowly and _nearly_ exaggeratedly, but not quite because he was never so obvious, Itachi turned his rather impassive gaze onto the legendary Yondaime who was looking quite amused at Obito's ramblings. And with his eyes, he told the man, _'save-me-my-father-is-insane-seriously-how-can-you-be-best-friends-with-him-?'_

Yes, his eyes were very expressive. But the Yondaime looked fairly perplexed. Perhaps the man had gotten the look mixed up with his, _'this-is-my-very-adorable-little-brother-if-you-even-so-much-as-look-wrong-in-his-direction-I'll-rip-off-a-very-important-part-of-the-male-anatomy'_ look. They did look relatively similar after all. He would have to work on that some day. He wouldn't want to make his little brother think that he didn't care about him or something equally _absurd_ just because he hadn't practiced making expressions enough and Sasuke had got the wrong idea. With that decided, Itachi turned back to his previous thoughts.

The Yondaime was staring at his staring and seemed rather uncomfortable. What did you do to comfort and reassure people? His mind instantly processed his question and landed on a single worded answer.

'_Smile_'; a facial expression that expresses happiness, gratitude or amusement. Did that fit in this situation? He was '_happy_' that the man was alive, of course, and grateful that the Yondaime had sacrificed himself for the good of the Village. And he was minutely amused at Obito's seemingly endless monologue. Yes, this was the ideal choice and it didn't take that many facial muscles to perform as a bonus.

Itachi _smiled._

Everyone stared.

His father seemed to be having a cardiac arrest. Itachi would have to _insist_ that he visit a medic-nin for a check-up soon. It would be rather bothersome if he had to take up the role as Head of Clan if his father died.

The Sandaime's pipe seemed to have dropped out of his mouth.

His older cousin was rolling on the ground and cackling manically. Perhaps he was having bouts of delirium as a consequence of coming back from the dead?

The Yondaime seemed undeceive between checking him for a terminal disease that caused people to have spasms of psychopathy (hmm… he should be checking Obito instead of him) and taking off with his little brother…

Itachi's eyes narrowed. Why was the supposedly dead Yondaime holding his younger brother? Then again… Sasuke hadn't even made a sound and normally, he would have been bouncing to get some attention.

This needed some serious investigating and he intended to get answers _very_ soon.

"_Yondaime-sama_… You have my brother."

No, that had not sounded threatening at the very least.


	5. Hokage

Hokage

* * *

Minato was afraid.

It wasn't one of those shuddery feelings you get when you accidentally kill the cat that belonged to the batty old woman who lived down the street because you thought it was a clumsy assassin. Rather, it was more like a jolt of unadulterated dread when you get the feeling that something absolutely terrible had happened and your day would suck _big time._

Some catastrophe must be happening in Iwa because Uchiha Itachi was _smiling._

Sure, it didn't look all that much like a smile, more like the slightest curl at the edges of the boy's lips, but it was something. Eyes swerving nervously like a rabbit's, he considered all the possible escape routes if a disaster were to suddenly strike the place he was standing.

Itachi was staring at him again, and perhaps he never had stopped staring, with a contemplative look in his eyes. Minato felt a shiver run across his skin.

A child should not be able to look so terrifying just by _smiling_.

Itachi smiling had officially become the third most frightening thing he had _ever_ seen.

First of course being the Shinigami, because it hid its malevolent insanity behind the sweet image of a child. Minato really hated it when the Shinigami got that strange intense look on its face while wearing the facade of an innocent little boy.

Second of all, the nightmare of all Kages, a truly eternal being that Orochimaru should discuss ideas on immortality with, _**Paperwork**_.

Many Kages to this day, dared not utter its name aloud in fear that they would somehow grow in size to make an army during the time of a despondent forehead-meet-desk moment. Minato's mind drifted back to memories of years ago…

* * *

**Flashback**

Minato was napping.

A small trail of drool had dribbled down his chin and pooled at the wooden surface of the desk that he was sleeping on. If only Iwa Nin could see him now, the Legendary Yellow Flash, the Yondaime Hokage, snoozing on his Hokage table with huge piles of paperwork taller than himself nearly falling on his head. A polite knocking interrupted his dozing.

"Hokage-sama, more paperwork!"

Minato did not open his eyes, but he did decide that his secretary was a very _very_ sadistic and evil woman. He heard the door slam shut and with justified trepidation, he peeked with one eye. In his head, a chibi Minato was crouched, hiding from the army of paperwork behind a boulder while chanting like a mantra, "If I can't see them, they can't see me."

Unfortunately, while this had been happening, the mountain of paperwork started to wobble and tilt. Poor Minato was startled out of his fantasies by a wave of paperwork that swept him out of the door.

Minato wished he was still napping.

* * *

Oddly enough, whenever Minato had seen the Sandaime in his office, there had never been any paperwork lying around. The old man had always been reading a scroll or lounging in his throne-like chair. He was immediately suspicious.

So when he took office as the Yondaime Hokage, he was extra careful to follow the Sandaime's example and sealed up all his paperwork whenever Kakashi happened to drop in. It wouldn't do for his student to declare that he would never take the position as Hokage after him if the boy chanced upon the heaps of paperwork that flooded his office.

When the Kyuubi came calling, Minato quickly sealed all his paperwork in a scroll and labeled it 'important message; for the eyes of Sandaime Hokage only'. He could already imagine the Sandaime's expression when he found out that all the paperwork had survived. It served the old man right.

**End Flashback**

**

* * *

**

Minato was disturbed from his daydreaming by Itachi's calculatedly detached voice.

"_Yondaime-sama,_ you have my brother."

Did the kid really not know how ominous that had just sounded? But considering Itachi's deadpan expression and impassive eyes, he couldn't pick out any amusement that suggested that the boy realized that he had practically threatened a Kage. Even so, Minato was feeling rather nervous. How did you tell a family that…?

"Sasuke is dying."

Whatever he had expected, it hadn't been for Itachi to nod somewhat understandingly like he had always known. From Fugaku and the Sandaime's expressions, they hadn't anticipated this solemn acceptance either.

"I have suspected that for a while. But I do not know the cause."

Minato was uneasy again. He had to explain why the child was dying? He really hated the Shinigami for giving him this job. The bastard was probably laughing his head off at his misfortune.

"His chakra is unbalanced. There's too much Youkai in his system and it's burning away his lungs." Confusion was uncharacteristically obvious on Itachi's face. Minato gathered all of his patience and begged that he had enough time to explain. The boy would be waking up soon. He could already feel the draining of Youkai that kept his body corporeal.

"Chakra is a mixture of two energies; Physical and Spiritual. Spiritual energy is used in genjutsu while Physical energy is used in ninjutsu. Spiritual energy can also be called Youkai if it is concentrated enough. Usually we are born with an equal amount of Physical and Spiritual energy but if a baby is born with unbalanced chakra, the child usually dies within a day. Sasuke is a unique case but even so, the abnormally large amount of Youkai in his body is destroying his lungs which results with him coughing up blood, low stamina and shortness of breath." At this, Minato directed their attention to the smudged stain of scarlet on his green flak jacket.

"From the large amount of Youkai, Sasuke will be able to see the souls of the dead and be able to give them a temporary body. Whenever he is hurt or injured, his Youkai will react and automatically send a burst of Youkai which souls will respond to and be given temporary bodies to protect him with."

"Is there anyone else who can do this?" The Sandaime was always ready to learn something new. This was an exceptional case, after all.

"Only someone who has a similar enough Chakra Matrix with him will be able to summon the souls. And only someone who spent enough time with Sasuke as a child because his body used to send unnoticeable flares of Youkai which would be slowly absorbed by the closest person, namely, Itachi. Of course you won't be able to do it as well as Sasuke and the souls will always listen to Sasuke in the foremost but it is a rare gift."

Minato felt the boy shift in his arms, as if he was nearly waking up, and he set the child gently to the ground. It wouldn't do for his to drop the child if he disappeared as the boy woke up. But then he felt a rising sense of panic. He still hadn't told them the most important part yet!

"Don't let the Council find out about him! The Shinigami's appren-!" But he didn't have enough time to complete his sentence as he faded away with a faint peal of wind chimes.

If only he could have finished the warning. It would have saved many lives.

* * *

Itachi was awake the moment he heard the soft padding of sock clothed feet down the corridor. He was already staring at the door when he heard a hesitant call.

"Aniki?"

"You may come in."

The door slid open and he watched as the child tottered to his side. Sasuke looked tentatively into his dispassionate gaze.

"Aniki, can I sleep with you tonight?"

Normally, he would have worked out what was troubling the boy and then sent him on his way, but tonight, he already knew what was bothering the child._ Just this once_, he assured himself. So he pulled back the covers and allowed the child to clamber to his side. Itachi stayed absolutely still as his little brother half curled up and nuzzled the pale skin of his neck.

He wrapped his arms around the small body and thought with a wave of hysteria._ I could kill you now. I could spill your bowels onto these bleached sheets that Mother washed just yesterday. I could tap a vital chakra point and you could die in a peaceful sleep. I would be the last thing you saw. I would be the last one to see you alive. Wouldn't it be better that I give you mercy and kill you now?_ But that ended when the boy whispered in his ear; saying those words he never wanted to hear spilling from his brothers lips. Sasuke was a child. He was young and he said it as if he didn't know that it would cause Itachi to have poison spread through his veins.

"I'm dying." It was a statement, said with such bland conviction, that it left Itachi without a doubt that he was not asking a question. But Itachi answered anyway.

"No you're not." _I won't let you._

Tiny hands clutched onto his neck. Itachi trusted Sasuke. He was placing his life in those soft and unmarred palms. They loosened.

"You're a bad liar, Aniki."

Itachi didn't sleep that night.


	6. Teacher

Teacher

* * *

Hatake Kakashi had been the teacher of Uchiha Sasuke for a month when the boy showed up on his doorstep.

He had three questions in mind.

1. Why was his apprentice alone when Itachi would practically stalk the boy just to make sure that he was safe?

2. Why was he awake at 5 in the morning?

3. How did the boy get his address?

"Aniki is on a long term mission to some place called 'Hogwarts'. Something like that."

That only answered one of his questions. Sasuke peered up at him through his bangs with wide innocent looking eyes.

"Can you watch the sunrise with me? I usually watch with Aniki, but he isn't here right now."

On the outside, Kakashi seemed like the same lazy and disinterested Jounin that he usually projected. But what he was feeling on the inside was a total different story.

As a child, whenever his father had the time, they would watch the Sun spill its rays across the sky like a painter splashing color across a blank canvas. When his father had committed seppuku, he had stopped waking up early to watch the sunrise. There had always been the feeling of loneliness and the phantom warmth of another by his side that haunted him.

Here was a child willing to watch with him.

So he agreed.

Then the child had smiled at him; filled to the brim with naïve hope and childlike delight. It had been the first time Kakashi had seen such a smile in ages. Kakashi wished that he had had _something_ to beam about like that when he was Sasuke's age.

He _wished_ that Sakumo was still alive just so that he could tell his father that he forgave him for all his mistakes as a parent. He kept expecting his father to be sitting by the kitchen table whenever he stepped through the door but there was never anyone back in his old complex.

He _wished_ that Obito was still alive so that he could see that confident grin again and then punch it off the idiot's face for giving up his life in exchange for Kakashi's so easily. But no matter how much he hoped, there was never any Obito sitting in front of the Memorial Stone looking sheepish with a lame excuse for his lateness.

He _wished_ that Rin was still alive so that he could tell her that she had never been useless, no matter how much he used to put her down. Whenever he was in the hospital, it was always on the tip of his tongue to request for her, but he would end up swallowing his words while trying to forget her stern face as she lectured him for yet _another_ wound.

He _wished_ that Minato-sensei was still alive so that he could give everyone hope again just with a gentle smile. Kakashi really should stop getting his hopes up by thinking that Minato-sensei was _just_ still sitting at the Ramen Stall while having an eating competition with Kushina-san. He was always disappointed when he only found a skinny blond boy gulping down Ramen like it was his last meal.

This child couldn't give his precious people back, but Kakashi would teach him because he was an innocent, _someone who hadn't experienced the horror of war_, and he would make sure that the boy would know enough to live a long and fulfilling life.

His hopes were crushed that same day.

* * *

When Kakashi drifted out of his daze, he found that he had been dragged to the top of the Hokage Mountain and to add a dash of irony, they were sitting on the Yondaime's head. For a few minutes, all they did was watch the swirls of color lighting up the sky as the Sun's rays bounced off the crimson clouds.

"You know, I used to think that the clouds disappeared when it was nighttime," There was a pause, and Sasuke seemed to contemplate what to say next. "I was proven wrong when I woke up last night and couldn't see the stars." The boy tilted his head considering. "It's funny how you pay so much more attention to details when you know that you don't have long to live."

Kakashi snapped then. The boy had been going on about how he was going to die since he had introduced himself. Perhaps he _had_ misjudged the boy and he really was a spoiled brat that wanted to draw his attention.

"What are you trying to-?" He spun around to look around at the boy but he froze at the boy's expression. He looked so much like a corpse, swathed in white bindings, and he looked so _old_. The boy looked tired and seemed to mimic a marionette with is strings ripped off that had been cruelly thrown away after he had lost his interest.

"I do not want your pity, Kakashi-sensei. I simply do not want you to get your hopes up. Every teacher expects their student to live to a far greater age than themselves. I am telling you this because I do not want you to think that I will even live to the age when it is legal for me to drink. I will die years before that. I'm afraid that your expectations of me are too high." Those fathomless onyx locked onto his and he saw not innocence as he had before, but an old and weary soul who knew dead so _intimately_ that the ghosts of the dead practically stalked their shadows.

Kakashi was the first to turn away, unwilling to keep seeing Obito's apparition in that gaze, staring back at him with such an earnest expression on his face. He _hated_ this place, Kakashi decided. His ghosts prowled this spot too much. Kakashi could _almost_ feel the warmth of their skin against his sides and the smiles on their faces.

He spared a glance at the old soul in front of him for a second longer before leaving in a whirl of smoke and leaves. If he had looked at the spaces beside him, he would have seen his ghosts gazing right back at him. It was unfortunate that Kakashi would only find out Sasuke's talent a while later. He wouldn't have any warnings when they were summoned while fighting Orochimaru.

* * *

Watching Kakashi's departure, the Shinigami was amused with such a predicament, while poor Minato was busy biting on his nails with worry. Sasuke _frankly_ couldn't care less. He was only a child and children had low attention spans.

Who cared what his perverted teacher did in his free time?

* * *

This chapter was basically of Kakashi's thoughts on his student. I'll be adding a poll to see who's point of view I should write in next. Please vote! Thank you!


	7. Protector

Kushina was in a bad mood.

She had been watching the Sasuke kid for _weeks_ now and she'd only seen her son _twice_.

**Dammit!** Can't a mother see her own son!

Kushina was ready to spit fire. She had to kill something in the next few seconds, or Shinigami-sama forbid, _she'd_…!

But she didn't get to continue her line of thought when the sound of explosions startled her from her drastically worsening temper.

Getting an absent-minded nod of consent (_seriously_, how could the boy live so long in such a daze?) from Sasuke, she felt the tingling feeling of her body materializing. The moment she was fully corporeal, she leapt onto a roof and cupped her hands so that it magnified her voice.

**"HELL YEAH! UZUMAKI KUSHINA IS BACK AND READY TO KICK FUCKING ASS!"**

Kushina had already bound over several roofs before someone bothered to check what maniac would shout so loudly on top of their roof. She had arrived at where she heard the explosions from and whistled. _Fucking hell _was she impressed! It would be on par as one of her legendary pranks.

The entrance of the ANBU Headquarters had been painted orange, and not just any orange; freaking _neon shining bright _orange! There was quite a few ANBU _glowing_ and _glittering_ bright yellow and red in the sunlight.

"You'll never catch, _'ttebayo_!" Why did that sound so familiar? The voice had sounded suspiciously high and squeaky, but not shrieking enough to be a girl's. She turned around a corner curiously and felt her breath hitch.

There was a boy wearing a bright orange jumpsuit running towards her being chased by a crowd of civilians armed with pitchforks and spades. But he was only laughing in their faces and shouting insults at them. Didn't he know how much danger he was in?

Then he turned around to look at her, and Kushina felt her heart very clearly thumping in her ears. He looked so much like Minato! All blond spiked hair and blue eyes shining with determination. But he had her features in his mischievous grin and the shape of his eyes._ Her son_.

She wanted desperately to grab him and yell his name in joy, but she couldn't make a sound as he passed her, not even giving her a second glance. He disappeared around the corner.

The civilians were hollering after him.

"The Demon's getting away!"

"Quickly catch it!"

"The Kyuubi Brat is gonna get it now!"

Kushina's eyes narrowed in fury. How _dare_ they call her son such insults!

As a parent, it was her responsibility to beat up these creeps. Minato wasn't here, probably wallowing away doing paperwork for the Shinigami, so it was up to her to deal with them. She rolled up her sleeves threateningly and glared harder when the civilians only laughed.

Now she was **pissed!**

When the first row of civilians were only a few feet away, she drew back her fist and swung at them. There was a domino effect as the front people flew backing into the ones behind them, sending the whole group soaring into a few brick buildings. Most of them were knocked unconscious, but some were trying to get up.

**"NEVER MESS WITH A UZUMAKI! ESPECIALLY MY SON, 'ttebane!"**

Kushina stomped on their crotches and watched in satisfaction as they moaned in agony and fainted.

She swept away in a good mood, back to the place Sasuke had been sitting.

Her job was done here.

* * *

The Sandaime was getting a migraine.

Naruto had dashed into his office and started jabbering about his exciting day. Sure he liked the kid a lot, but his secretary would shout his ear off if he didn't finish his pile of paperwork. He looked mournfully at the giant mountains of pure evil that was stacked on his desk. Reluctantly, he picked up the top one about a group of civilians who were in hospital.

"…and I was running, and then there was this _really_ pretty red haired lady who I passed and then it was really odd 'cause I couldn't see anyone following me. Oh, did I tell you how pretty her hair was? It was all _long and shiny and red_. It was so long it reached her legs. Sometimes I imagine that's how my mom would have looked."

The Sandaime choked.

Could it be?

He cleared his throat.

"Keep describing her," at Naruto's puzzled look, he continued. "Like the color of her eyes or what she was wearing."

"Well, she had bluish-purple eyes and she was wearing a long dress and an apron. And she had a pretty hairclip too."

There was no doubting it. Uzumaki Kushina had been the one Naruto had seen. And there was only one reason she could have been there.

* * *

"Sandaime-sama, you wanted to see me." Sasuke had always been a mystery to the Sandaime and what with the dreamy expression on his face coupled with the _I'll-just-pretend-to-listen-to-you-but-I'm-really-actually-inside-my-own-head_ voice, he was sometimes tempted to wave his hand in front of the boy's eyes to check if there really was anyone there.

"Yes, was Kushina-san the one watching you today?"

"Hai, she's been here for a few weeks now."

"And where is Minato…?" The Sandaime tried to prompt the boy to answer him.

"Yondaime-sama is currently busy doing paperwork for Shinigami-sama. Yondaime-sama is deeply sorry for any inconvenience this may cause." Sometimes the Sandaime wondered if Sasuke would always sound so much like an answering machine.

"Have you met Naruto yet? No? What do you know about him?"

"Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto, the Jinchuriki of Kyuubi no Yoko, son of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina and the godchild of Jiraiya of the Sannin. Born October 10th, Blood type B, Wind Affinity, his hobbies are pulling pranks and watering plants, his favorite foods are Ichiruka Ramen and red bean soup, he dislikes fresh vegetables, his goal is to become the Hokage and surpass all the previous ones so that the villagers will finally acknowledge him as someone important…"

Sarutobi hid his surprise well. Sasuke knew all this without ever meeting Naruto?

"Since you are a Genin, I have a long term mission for you. You will guard Naruto and make sure that he does not get hurt by the villagers and-"

Sasuke interrupted him with his eyes abnormally clear and his tone peculiarly brusque.

"My apologies, Sandaime-sama. I must refuse. I will establish contact with Namikaze-san tomorrow and befriend him. I cannot accept just letting him be coddled and defended. When I am not there, he will not be able to protect himself if that is the case. Besides, when people realize that he is under the protection of the Uchiha clan, they will refrain from attacking him. And if not…" He tilted his head and smiled innocently while dragging his finger tauntingly across his neck. "There _might_ just be a public execution or a few heads rolling on the floor. Wouldn't that be _such_ an unusual coincidence?"

Still smiling in that dangerously sugared and sweet way, he jumped out of the window and shot out of sight.

Sarutobi got the feeling that his poor ear would be deaf by the end of the week.

The Council was filled with strangely loud complainers, after all.


	8. Naruto

**Author's Note;** Sorry for the slow update! I got a new computer and it wouldn't work for days.

Sorry for the short chapter! I'll update soon!

* * *

Naruto sat by himself in the Academy's playground.

He didn't try to sit near the other students because he knew that they would just run away from him. Except Shikamaru and Choji, but all they did was watch the clouds and eat.

He focused on the plain looking box that he had spent the whole of two weeks making. There was a pot of lacquer and a thick brush next to that.

"What are you trying to do?" The voice came from behind him. Naruto tilted his head back to stare at a pair of impassive black eyes. The one who asked was a kid his age, but Naruto was sure that he'd never seen him before.

"I'm making a box to put things in." The pride in his voice was apparent. The other boy stared curiously at him for a while before plopping himself down next to Naruto. Catching his surprised gaze, the other boy smiled, but Naruto didn't focus on his lips. It was the smiling wrinkles at the corner of his eyes that his attention was drawn to. He had discovered that people were only really happy if there were wrinkles along with their smile. The other smiles were all fake.

Like when the Old Man Hokage saw his secretary come in with a pile of paperwork. Or when most of the shopkeepers saw him in their shop.

If the other boy was smiling so happily at him, then that meant his parents hadn't warned him away from Naruto. He grinned back, eyes squinted and mouth threatening to split his face in half.

"Wanna try?" Naruto asked, holding out the brush to the other boy.

* * *

Sasuke took the brush and sent a questioning look in Naruto's direction. Naruto picked up the jar and twisted off the lid before setting it down in front of him.

He stared at the odd liquid in the pot. It looked a bit like the invisible ink that he used when writing in a secret message scroll. But it was too thick and the enemies would be able to read it by touch. Sasuke dipped his finger in it and drew back when it stuck to his fingertip. It was definitely not invisible ink then. If it was too sticky, it would hard to write with and in emergencies, that would be a hindrance.

"What's this?"

"That's lacquer. It kinda like glue and you have to wash your hands or pick it off if it gets on your skin."

"What's it supposed to do?"

"It makes it all shiny and protects the wood."

"Oh."

Sasuke poked it, expecting it to jump up and start protecting the box.

He was rather disappointed when all he got was a sticky finger.

* * *

"So, what's your name?"

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto, 'ttebayo!"

"It's a pleasure to meet you."

* * *

"You should stay away from him."

"Who?"

"Naruto, Minato's son. You should stay away from him." Fugaku repeated.

"I refuse."

Fugaku's eyes widened.

"But the Youkai that his body produces will speed up your death! It'll mix with the Youkai already in your body and burn away your lungs!" His son turned around, eyes half-lidded and expression frosty. With a small smile playing along his lips he spoke.

"I promised Yondaime-sama. I promised that I would take care of his son. If I die in the process. Then... _so be it_."

_Yondaime-sama... your son is my in charge now._.. _rest assured,_ _he will **not** be dying on my watch._


	9. Reason

**Reason**

* * *

It had been widely acknowledged through out the Shinobi Nations, that Hatake Kakashi was a prodigy. The type that only showed up every few centuries.

So it would have startled many people to discover that he was in a situation where he had no idea whatsoever what to do.

Kakashi slouched over a rail and scratched his head nonchalantly, as if he wasn't totally dumbstruck. Nearly all the jutsus from D to B rank, Sasuke already knew, and he wasn't prepared to teach such a young child A or S rank jutsus. His Chakra control was close to perfect as it'll ever be and no matter what his past could-have-been-students-who-he-never-passed, Kakashi was also _not _cruel enough to subject a six year old to the company of 12 year olds just so he could preach the values of teamwork. Never mind the fact that said six year old could have the older Genins flat on their backs in a second flat. His dilemma was that he didn't know what to teach the boy now.

What did he lack?

Well stamina for one, he conceded, but Kakashi was rather unwilling to beat up a child just for training. What else did he lack? Itachi would have said hatred. And Shisui would have joined in and agreed with him but also attaching on the fact that Sasuke hardly had any emotions or facial expressions at all anyway. Peering back at the boy behind him, Kakashi had to confess that he agreed rather reluctantly with both. The child could have have been reading Icha Icha Paradise for all they could know and his face wouldn't have so much as flushed.

What else?

He stared for a moment, at the boy whose attention was fixed on a scroll.

Suddenly, as if one of the female race had slapped him, an idea struck him.

Inside his mind, a Chibi Kakashi jumped for joy while punching the air in triumph. It gave a shout of pure exuberance and started shouting at Chibi Obito (who popped out of nowhere) about how awesome and incredible he was. Hey, no one ever said he was _sane_. If they had, they must never have met him before.

So, with a masked smile on his face, he walked over to his student.

"I've got a task for you, Gaki," He received only a disinterested look for his efforts. Chibi Kakashi sulked. "I want you to go around asking people a question about something you don't know or understand. It'll help your information gathering skills," The fact that it would _also _help his social skills went unsaid. "Off you go now."

Something that looked suspiciously like a pout flickered across Sasuke face, but it was gone so quickly that Kakashi shook it off as his overactive imagination. The boy rolled up the scroll before Kakashi could read what was written there and stood up, brushing off the nonexistent specks of dirt off his immaculate white kimono. Shaking his head, Kakashi decided that the poor boy had an obsession with cleanness. But he couldn't complain, what with his own more than_ slight _inclination towards visiting the Memorial Stone.

* * *

It was near dusk when they met back at the bridge.

There was a frown creasing Sasuke's eyebrows, Kakashi observed. He was curious, he admitted, but even though he entertained the idea of out right asking, Kakashi knew that wouldn't have the desired effect on his student. With these type of people, you couldn't handle them like the 'Obito' type of people. He picked out his Icha Icha Paradise out of his weapons pouch and settled down to read. For a while, there was only the soft rustling of the trees and the casual flips of his book, as Sasuke only stared at the space next to Kakashi with a frustratingly confusing mix of annoyance and amusement on his face. Kakashi had developed a routine of checking next to him to see if he could find what Sasuke kept looking at. So far his efforts had been left unrewarded.

"Love," Sasuke said slowly. Kakashi was sure he would have fallen to the ground if he hadn't already been sitting down. He shook his head like a dog, sure that the word had somehow been mangled on its short journey to his eardrums. Nup, his ears were fine. That would mean... his apprentice really had just said that. Oh Kami-sama, what next? Would he be asking what sex was soon?

"Love," Kakashi mimicked in monotone, desperately using all his years of self-control to keep his voice even. It seemed that it worked when Sasuke's expression didn't change. But then again, it nearly never did.

"I asked a few people about it," Sasuke continued. "Some of the women described it as a feeling that made you feel whole and made you willing to give up your life for another." Kakashi nodded. That sounded just about right.

"So...?" Kakashi dragged out, trying to coax his student into carry on. He tried to sound disinterested, but his failure was evident. Sasuke's face darkened, eyebrows furrowing and lips curling downwards.

"Then why do they fall in love? Why are they so willing to open themselves up to another? Wouldn't it be easy for an enemy to just threaten the person they love? Wouldn't that make it easier for someone to kill them? So why?"

"We all die, Sasuke, just some younger than others," Kakashi answered, single eye staying purposely on the child. "They fall in love for a reason. The same reason people seek power, status and acknowledgement."

"And...and what is this reason?" His lips quirked into a bitter smile under his mask.

"Don't we all wish we knew?"

* * *

**TBC...**


	10. Sunagakure

Sunagakure

**AN;** I'm so sorry for the irregular posts. The summer holidays are making me lazy.

* * *

"You-you, Kashi-sensei, are insane," Sasuke stared up at his teacher in near disbelief.

Said perverted teacher peered from behind his book, eyes heavy with disinterest. Either Kakashi was very, _very_ reckless or planning something. After all, what responsible adult entered a six year old in a battle to the death tournament against children _twice_ their age?

Sasuke reread the scroll, now believing whole heartedly that his teacher was trying to murder him without being suspected of homicide.

"At least it's hosted in Suna instead of Iwa," he convinced himself, as he scrambled to find something good in this catastrophe. "The people there are still '_hailing_' Aniki as the next coming of the Yellow Flash. I'd practically be torn apart the second I step foot there."

"Maa…Think of it as a B-rank mission," here Kakashi pulled out another scroll from his flak jacket which Sasuke wearily accepted. "The actual reason that you were entered into the Chunin Exams so early is because the Hokage heard an interesting rumor that someone special was entering this time. Team 3, 6 and 8 are on missions, and Teams 5 is the only team available this year. Unfortunately, one of their teammates is in hospital and won't be cleared for until the Exams are over. So you will be taking over that position."

_Hook._

"And… who might this fascinating participant be?"

"Akasuna no Koji **[1]**," Kakashi watched in amusement as his student's eyes suddenly sharpened and he could nearly see the boy's brain running through its records.

_Line._

"Akasuna… as in, a relative of _the _Akasuna no Sasori?"

"Yes, even a _more _interesting fact is that he hasn't aged a day since Sasori left Suna."

"Indeed…"

_And sinker._

The teacher smiled from behind his mask. Sasuke had fallen for the bait, and now all they needed was for him to sniff around Suna and the suspicious circumstances around Akasuna no Koji would be unfolded.

That is,_ if _he survived the Chunin Exams.

* * *

Sasuke was _not_ in a good mood.

He had been practicing this technique for a few weeks now and it had yet to work properly.

Needless to say, the preparations for surviving this Exam was not quite going as well as he had expected.

His brows furrowed in concentration, hands parallel to the ground, slowly pumping chakra into the dirt. A few seconds passed before the dirt started contorting, rising into the air and gathering into a ball. It warped until it had a head, four legs and a tail for balance, merely the size of an average house cat.

He sighed, rather disappointed, but it had been better than his last try which had only yielded one with a missing leg.

But he couldn't stay sulking when the thing rubbed its head into his palm, much like a kitten. Catching an opportunity, he started gradually pushing chakra into the thing, watching in fascination as it sluggishly grew in size until it was as tall as his waist. Now its face was more distinct, able to make out a snout and ears. Bit by bit eyes were formed and details like whiskers formed. It blinked lazily and nudged at his hip, begging for more rubs.

It was almost like having Nibi back.

"_Isn't she the prettiest kitty you've ever seen, Onii-chan?" The double tailed demon cat preened at the praise and the massive boost of ego. His brother raised an eyebrow._

"_How do you know that it's female? It could be male like Gobi and Kyuubi."_

_He pouted and cuddled he kitten closer._

"_Nibi-chan is a girl 'cause she's prettier than all the others. And she doesn't mind being a girl anyway, does she?"_

Sasuke froze in his stroking.

He'd never had a pet before, let alone a legendary two tailed demon cat. And he had most assuredly had _never_ called anyone_ 'Onii-chan'_. The thing rubbed against his hand, confused about why he had suddenly stopped.

Sasuke only stared down at it, observing the hidden muscles rippling as it moved.

Then he squeezed his hand in a fist and it instantaneously burst into a cloud of dust, raining down to its rightful place.

Had someone put a genjutsu on him without him noticing? Was he still trapped in it?

He turned away, heading back into a more civilized part of the Village. He had been quite satisfied with his accomplishment today, but more questions had burst forth with it. Maybe they could have been answered if he had kept the thing animated for longer…

But, he had been getting too attached to the thing.

And that just would _not_ do.

* * *

It was the day they were leaving for Suna.

Sasuke had yet to meet the other two members of the team and he was rather uncertain how to act. Kakashi could _not_ believe that he had been interrupted from his reading just for _such_ a stupid question.

But Sasuke looked serious for once, even while doing something so odd and out of character.

"Plan A or Plan B?"

"Eh? How am I supposed to answer when I don't even know what Plan A or B is?"

"Plan A; act like a child my age should. Pros: The stronger contestants are less likely to try and fight me. Cons: Weaker contestants are more likely to hunt me because I seem like an easy target. Plan B; stay in the background and let others take the attention. Pros: Others are less likely to notice me which lessens the opponents I have to face. Cons: The more observant contestants will be suspicious of me and more likely to remove me from the competition."

Kakashi scratched the back of his head. Well, both plans had equal potential, but Plan A would be much more entertaining for him to watch.

"Maa… Plan A puts you in less danger of dying so-" he cut himself off quickly when he saw the other half of their team. It was a Hyuuga from the branch family and the daughter of the Inuzuka Head of House with her three mutts.

_Interesting._

"Are you Hatake Kakashi?" At his nod, the girl continued. "I'm Inuzuka Hana. These are Ichimaru, Nimaru and Sanmaru who make the Three Haimaru Brothers," As she called their names, the indicated dog barked. The teacher raised a hidden eyebrow. They were certainly better trained then his ninken. Hana then gestured to the Hyuuga. "And he's Hyuuga Yuu **[2]**."

Kakashi waved a hand lazily. "You already know me. This is my student, Uchiha Sasuke. Play nice now." Since they had arrived, Hana and Yuu had been ignoring the youngest boy, but now they stared in astonishment. Obviously, they had been expecting someone much older.

Hana pointed down at Sasuke, disregarding how rude she was being.

"This _pup_? He's the same age as my little brother. You must be pulling my leg." Her reply was a severely out of character bright smile from the boy.

"It's nice to meet you Hana-nee-san, Yuu-san," Sasuke chirped, in the same hyperactive way that he copied from Naruto. "I hope we have fun together."

His teacher smiled under his face mask, eye turning into an upside down 'U', when the girl practically melted into a pile of cooing goo and the older boy had to let out a small smile. Sasuke was already initiating Plan A with his teammates. The beauty of it was that they were unwittingly going along with his plan by treating him like a little kid, making his act even more authentic.

Hana bent down to the boy's level and grinned cheekily at him, mood swinging into a completely different direction.

"It's nice to meet you too, Sasuke-chan," Kakashi was sure he was the only one who noticed the scowl that flickered over Sasuke's mask before it was replaced with a childish smile. "If you ever need help, just call Hana-nee-chan, 'kay?"

She received a bright nod and a giggle that nearly made Kakashi choke on air.

Okay, Sasuke acting his age was very, very strange.

* * *

**[1]** Yes, this is an OC. Yes, I'm going to be damned to Hell for doing this, but don't worry, he won't be here for all that long. I know that Sasori's last name isn't Akasuna, but it's practically become one, so I figured that it would be passed onto Koji by association. His name means 'light/shining second child'. And his name **is** significant to the story.

**[2]** Oh no, another OC! The problem was that I couldn't think of anyone else who could be Sasuke's teammate. And I couldn't help myself. I nearly killed myself laughing when I found out that it meant 'superior and gentle'. I mean Yuu Kanda; Superior, sure. _Gentle_? No way in **Hell!**


End file.
